Scotland to vote in 2014 on leaving the United Kingdom

Oct. 15, 2012
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Britain's Prime Minister, David Cameron, left, shakes hands with Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond in Edinburgh, where they met to sign a deal granting Scotland power to hold a referendum on whether to stay in the United Kingdom. / Andrew Milligan AP

by USA TODAY

by USA TODAY

Scottish voters will be able to vote in a referendum in 2014 on the question of whether Scotland should leave the United Kingdom.

The terms of the referendum were reached Monday in a deal between British Prime Minister David Cameron and Alex Salmond, the first minister of Scotland, the BBC reports.

On Cameron's insistence, the referendum will be a single yes/no question -- a clear choice, as he puts it -- on Scotland leaving the U.K.

Scotland was an independent country until it signed the Treaty of Union in 1707.

The Scottish side had originally sought to have two questions on the ballot, with the alternative focusing on simply granting the current Scottish parliament and government more autonomy and power while remaining in the U.K.

"This is the right decision for Scotland, but it's also right for the United Kingdom that there is going to be one, simple, straightforward question about whether Scotland wants to stay in the United Kingdom or separate itself from the United Kingdom, and that referendum has to be held before the end of 2014," Cameron tells the BBC. "I always wanted to show respect to the people of Scotland --- they voted for a party that wanted to have a referendum, I've made that referendum possible and made sure that it is decisive, it is legal and it is fair."

Salmond says the agreement marks a "significant step in Scotland's home rule journey," the BBC reports

He adds: "Do I believe that independence will win this campaign? Yes, I do. I believe we'll win it by setting out a positive vision for a better future for our country economically and also, crucially, socially."

The New York Times notes that 2014 as the date for the referendum is significant because it marks the 700th anniversary of the Battle of Bannockburn, when a vastly outnumbered Scottish army annihilated the army of King Edward II in 1314.

The most recent poll on independence suggests support for leaving the U.K. has dropped, Sky News reports. A survey of 995 adults, published last week, showed support for the union at 53% compared with support for independence at 28%.

The agreement also allow 16 and 17-year-olds to vote in the referendum.